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Put'tin on the Ritz

Arboc the True rides up to the stable entrance that is just outside the Tavern of Misty Hollow. He is greeted by Oscar, the stable boy. "evening sir," say the young boy. "Hello Oscar." Replies the Knight. Arboc dismounts from his steed and hands Oscar the reins. "Oscar, on my saddle is my game bag. Inside you will find 2 pheasants. Please have your mother prepare them for me. I'm entertaining a business client tomorrow at lunch and would like to serve her those birds. Also, give your mother this list, ask her to purchase these things for me when the stores open in the morning." Arboc stretches "I also need you and your father to bring the wagon around just after sun up. You and he are to take one of the tables from the tavern as well as those 2 over stuffed chairs in my room and load them into the wagon. Then come fetch me. We'll pick up your mother after she's done shopping and take everything out to the ruins over in the next meadow. Here's some money for your mother to shop with." Arboc hands over a small bag of silver to the young boy. "Whatever your mother dosen't spend your family can keep for your assistance tomorrow." "Will there be anything else sir?" say little Oscar. "That's it. Give the hellbitch a good rubdown, she was worked hard today." Arboc tosses the boy a gold piece. "Goodnight Oscar," Arboc turns awayy from the stable and walks into the Tavern.

As dawn breaks over the low hills of Misty Hollow, a wagon, driven by a kindly man and his son stops in front at the tavern door. The man called Arboc opens the tavern door carrying a large overstuffed chair. “Morning Hans. Morning Oscar.” He says. The table I want you to get is just inside the door I want you to take. While you’re getting that I’ll go get the other chair from my room.” Arboc places the chair on the ground next to the wagon and the proceeds back up stairs. By the time Oscar and Hans had loaded the table and chair, Arboc appeared with the second overstuffed chair, the one with velvet upholstery. Also on the chair is a box full of gold plates, bowls and utensils. “Has your wife finished the shopping yet Hans?” Arboc asked. “She has sir. Everything has been prepared to your specifications. Do you want her to come with us?” “Yes I do. Get your wife and take all these things to the ruins over that hill. Set up the table and chairs underneath that big willow tree next to that archway. Inside that box you will find everything needed to set a proper table. So set the table and put the wine in the stream to chill it. I’m going to wash and change my clothes. I will meet you at the ruins in about an hour.” “Yes sir,” said Hans. With a slight crack of the reins, the horses begin to move the men and the wagon away from the Knight.

Listle steps over to the bottom of the stairs, effectively blocking the way up to the rooms. A smile tugs at the corner of her lips as she eyes Arboc speculatively, "And just what manner of mischief are you up to now, toots? I sense something interesting going on, and you KNOW how I hate to be in the dark!". Fully expecting a grumpy response from the shiny knight, she steps aside to let him up the stairs. "Behave, you!" she calls up after him and wanders back to the bar to check her stock.

“Mischief? Moi?” Declares Arboc to Listle, trying to put on that oh so innocent face she’s come to love. “When have you ever known me to “CAUSE” mischief?” Arboc kneel down on one knee and stares up at his favorite Barbarian. “Dearest Listle, you know darn well that mischief (a.k.a trouble) finds me. I don’t know what attracts it to me. It just happens. All I have planned for today is to finish up my business with LadyChina, over an innocent picnic lunch out by the ruins south of here. Now what’s wrong with that?” Arboc smiles, and bats his soft brown eyes at his friend. Then the Knight gets up and heads up the stairs towards his room. When he reaches the top of the staircase Arboc turns and shouts down to his comrade, “Remember, in less the 4 weeks you and I have a quest to meet in that city where everyone kisses their cousins, and really likes it. You bring the hot chocolate and I’ll bring red vines and we’ll meet at that tavern that serves the raw fish. For now, I have to get ready for fun. Would you believe it, LadyChina says she can’t understand how I have the ability to piss her off. Ta for now Listle.” Arboc waves down to his friend, turns and disappears behind the door to his room.

As Arboc reaches the runis south of Misty Hollow, the family he has employed has already placed the table and chairs underneath the old willow tree. The Knight is wearing a dark emerald green silk shirt with a coal black vest. His riding trousers are a light charcoal gray, and his boots are shined so, that they reflect the sunshine. "Greetings friends. I see that you've almost finished. Have we got everything? Let's see. Solid gold service is shinning brightly. The pheasant is slow cooking on the fire good. Oysters have been shucked and are ready, good. I see the spinach salad and walnut dressing is done. A variety of fruit, yes. Fresh bread and butter, as well as some preserves. Very nice. Wine and champange are chilling in the stream. My friends you have out done yourselves. Now all that is left is for me to serve this lunch to LadyChina. You can leave now, but return about an hour before sunset. My business will concluded by then." Arboc bows the the family as the climb into their wagon and head back towrds the village. Arboc walks over to his horse and takes his sheathed sword from his saddle and straps it around his waist. "Still about an hour before high noon. Good, the wine and champange will be cold by the time "Milady" arrives." The Knight thinks to himself as he stand all alone in shadow of these ruins.

*a six foot leather whip lay secured in a coil at her waist, the serpent medallion hung by its leather loop around her neck the scales still warm against her skin. The toad, who'd not started life as such, was ensconced between Kattah and Dexbramah (fully recovered), in a small woven wicker basket. She had no idea what use the trio would be, but she'd spent far too many days and nights wandering the swamps and the lands before and after with nothing and no one to talk to but the wind. A whining croak and batty shrieks were at least directed at her in particular and not the world in general.

The Ruins spread out before her in macbre majesty. A fine place for deal making. And deal breaking, of course.

First you had to have one before you could consider the other.

"Arboc?"

She saw him standing in the shadow of a tumbled wall. The medallion, the animals, and an embracing of chaos. Simple goals.

Arboc slowly turns towards the person calling his name. He steps into the sunlight smiling. He nods his head and says,”LadyChina, thank you for coming. I hope your journey from the swamp was pleasurable one? Please come closer. I have taken the liberty of having some lunch prepared for us. Come, sit. Please take this chair,” He directs LadyChina to the chair with the velvet upholstery. “I thought we would eat first and then we’ll discuss your proposal from the other evening.” Arboc walks to the edge of the stream and pulls 2 bottles of wine and a bottle of champagne from the cools waters. “The menu for the day is a spinach salad with wild walnut dressing, followed by a slow cooked roasted pheasant as our main course. We have oysters both smoked and on the half shell for appetizers. And for dessert, a variety of fresh fruit from around the world. I've also selected a very fine white wine to go with the fowl. I also brought some champagne if you prefer that.” Arboc lifts the platter of oysters and offers them to LadyChina. “Appetizer?”

Lady China spoke a mystical chant, the toad hopped from the basket and before it hit the ground transformed into a muscled seven foot tall barbarian named Colossus. He turned swiftly, ripping the whip from its coiled position at her hip. His arm continued the upward motion began with the taking of the whip. The leather unfurled its oiled black length, a sleeping snake woken by winds of its own creation. Its forked plaited tongue reached Arboc's naked neck and licked it hard enough to leave a lover-like mark as a sign of its possession of his flesh. The muscled arm drew back and again sent the sinuous lash snaking towards Arboc. This time it wrapped itself around his knees. A harsh tug threw him to the ground where he lay on his back, as Lady China approached - appraisingly...

*She looked up from her gaze on the basket and its contents, blinked at Arboc's inquiry. Sighed. Sat in a comfortable armchair and put her basket on the ground beside her. The coiled whip was shifted from her waist to lay in her lap like a sleeping pet.*

"It sounds lovely, Arboc the True. You've transformed a desolate place into a comfortable haven. I believe that Shoehorn of EvilWay has it in his heart and mind to do the same to his entire land. Perhaps you'd lend him your expertise. There comes a time when all must work together so that the battle fought after is for a prize worth having, don't you agree?

"What do you know of the powers of this medallion I wear?" A long nail scrapped against the lusterous scales of the entwined serpents at her neck. "And what are you willing to do to gain it?"

Lying on the ground, feeling very humiliated. Arboc sits straight up, reaches behind his back and draws a long steel dagger. He slices the leather that bound his knees in one quick motion. Then the Knight stands on his feet and brushes the dirt from his clothes. Arboc stares at LadyChina like a rabid wolf ready to pounce. “Excuse me,” he say and proceeds towards the man call Colossus, and without say one word, Arboc plants a perfect size 13 in that spot between the man’s legs that hurts oh so much. The big man keels over in pain. The Knight then grabs the back of Colossus’s head and pushes it toward the ground, while at the same time; Arboc brings his right knee up, into his opponent’s jaw. Colossus (with the help of Arboc), takes a nap at that very moment. Breathing heavily, Arboc joins LadyChina at the lunch table. Rubbing his neck, Arboc says,”Would you have preferred a stuffed mushroom instead?” Opening a bottle of wine, the mighty Knight forgets his manners and fills his goblet and takes a hearty drink. “Nice move. I underestimated you. That won’t ever happen again.” Arboc takes another drink. “Try something like that again and there will be more then your giant’s teeth on the ground.”

Looking at LadyChina with murderous eyes, Arboc fills LadyChina’s glass with the wine on the table. “DRINK!” He demanded thrusting the glass at her,
“Do you know why I chose this place? Look around. These ruins were once the place of a mighty battle. Long ago, when the earth was new, all the beasts and creatures of the volcano wrecked havoc over Yseribus. True chaos reigned. Eons went by and the nasty's of this place ran wild. So wild, that their evil spilled into lands beyond the borders of Yseribus. But the beings of the outer lands would not stand by while the evil of Yseribus destroyed their lands. These being began to group together and invaded Yseribus. People came to Yseribus. Clerics, rangers, barbarians came to this land. Wizards, knights, even trolls came to Yseribus. These people came to Yseribus and fought back against its indigenous creatures. The two sides fought over many more eons, so many, no one knew how long the war had been going on. The new beings of Yseribus pushed the old back into the volcano which spawned them. And as you know, the Cano finally went silent.”

After speaking this tale a smile returned to the face of the man called Arboc. “Funny thing though, the war went on so long that both sides were influenced by the other. Good and evil. Harmony and chaos. Can’t have one with out the other.”

“The symbol on that medallion does mean something to me. But not for the reason you think.” Arboc’s words are spoken with cold harsh tone. Closing his eyes briefly, Arboc takes a deep breath and regains his composure. “Definitely not for the reasons you think, Mi'lady. I have already told you one story today LadyChina. I’ll tell you one about serpents another time.” The being called Colossus begins to stir from his sudden nap. Arboc draws his sword and says, “Either turn him back into a toad now, or I will separate his head from his body before he can stand. Now gather your things and go. We will talk again when I’m ready. GO!!!!!” Arboc the True stands with his sword at ready. At this very moment, he is the most dangerous creature in Yseribus.

*swallowing the glass of the sweet wine, with a wistful glance at the plentiful food, she rose and walked to her bloodied champion. Poor Colossus. He really never should have crossed her path in the Dwarven Kingdom so long ago. Or perhaps it was the crossing he did of her will that resulted in such a special kiss for him. Kneeling on the rocky ground beside him she stroked his long hair back from his damaged face. He opened his eyes, and saw her soft lips descending for a kiss. I love you, Mistress. He'd been kissed by her many times, until he'd learned the error of his ways, and how true devotion was shown. She kissed his cracked lips deeply, his blood entered her mouth and he was suddenly as he'd been. The kiss left the slitted nose of a toad.

"I know you do."

*Returning to her basket she placed the toad beside the shivering bats, lifted its handle on to her arm and walked away from Arboc without a word.*

*She smiled at him though. Sweetly. Warmly. Her head tilted slightly in a nod of farwell.*